Wyoming lawmakers rejected a proposal to cut the coal severance tax rate from 7% to 6%, a move that would have cost the state $28 million in revenue in the coming fiscal year.

House Bill 104 was defeated Jan. 20 in the House Revenue Committee, the Casper (Wyo.) Star-Tribune reported.

Supporters said the bill would put coal on a level playing field with natural gas, which is taxed at 6%. But Travis Deti of the Wyoming Mining Association told the Star-Tribune that the bill was a long shot when the state is facing a revenue shortfall of $400 million in a $3 billion, two-year budget.